Early history After the opening of
St. John's College in 1867, most minor seminarians for the Diocese of Saint Paul were educated there or at other seminary institutions in the United States or in Europe. However,
Thomas Grace hoped that eventually a dedicated college for the diocese would be founded, and in November 1866 purchased forty acres on the shores of
Lake Johanna with the hope it would eventually become a seminary. Grace's successor,
John Ireland, took office in June 1884, and in December of that same year announced plans to build a seminary for the diocese, which would become the
College of St. Thomas. The fledgling college was not unique among Catholic institutions of its time in that it functioned as a sort of combination theological seminary, minor seminary, junior college, high school, and junior high school. The campus of the Saint Paul Seminary was designed by architect
Cass Gilbert, who also designed the
Minnesota State Capitol. The six original buildings were constructed to look like a
train depot (the SPS administration building), a steam engine (gymnasium and physical plant), box cars (
Cretin, Grace (though constructed in 1913), and Loras halls), a
refectory, and a roundhouse (school building). The campus was completed in 1894. The dormitory row (Loras, Cretin, and Grace halls) at SPS was nominated to the
National Register of Historic Places in 1986 as a
historic district, but the listing was never finalized. The dedication ceremony for the Saint Paul Seminary was attended by the
apostolic delegate to the United States, Archbishop
Francesco Satolli, four other archbishops, ten bishops, and over four hundred priests. The
Pontifical Mass was attended by 20,000 people all told. The Mass was celebrated outdoors, with an altar constructed up against the administration building. When it opened in 1894, SPS had sixty-five
seminarians. By 1900, enrollment had risen to 110 seminarians from all over the
Midwest and as far away as
San Francisco, California. John Ireland's deep involvement with the
Catholic University of America led to an affiliation that allowed any graduate of SPS to present himself for a baccelaureate degree from CUA. The unexpected deaths of Cotter and Bishop
John Shanley of Fargo and the resignation of Bishop
John Stariha of Lead, all in 1909, prompted a crisis of the episcopate in the Upper Midwest. In addition, the
Diocese of Crookston and
Diocese of Bismarck were established. As such, there were five sees that required bishops. With the additional assignment of an axuliary bishop for Saint Paul, six priests required episcopal consecration. That consecration took place at St. Mary's Chapel on May 19, 1910. Approximately 1,000 people filled the chapel that day for the ceremony. Under Taphorn, restructuring to allow for the implementation of a propadeutic year began. == Campus ==